Vitoria-Gasteiz

The Visigoth King Leovigild founded a city called Victoriacum on the occasion of a victory over the Basques in the 6th century. In 1181, King Sancho the Wise of Navarre founded what is now Vitoria with the name Nueva Victoria. This was an extension of the already existing Basque settlement of Gasteiz, which was developed into a fortress against Castile. In 1199, the city was besieged for nine months and finally taken by the troops of Alfonso VIII of Castile, who annexed the city to the Kingdom of Castile. The city was gradually enlarged and was granted city rights in 1431.



Today, Vitoria-Gasteiz is a lively, colourful city with more than 250,000 inhabitants.